I was sent a couple of these cigars from our sponsor, Tex Cigars.  When I got them, I was really impressed with the quality of the wrapper, and construction.  They look really tasty for a nice morning smoke.  It’s about 7:30am on Friday October 3rd, and I thought this cigar would go well with a nice cup of coffee.  Its also been a while since I have done a review for you guys, our loyal readers, so here we go!

Pre-light: As I pulled this out of my cello, the first thing I noticed was how well constructed this cigar was.  The wrapper was nice and smooth, with no major veins, and the wrapper was almost perfect. So far, judging by the appearance alone, this is going to be a nice smoke.  I ran it along the length of my nose to get a feel for how the smells came at me.  The first thing I noticed was that there was not a whole lot of smell coming from this cigar.  I did notice a slight creaminess with some spicy and light leathery notes, but they were not very strong.  I clipped this cigar with my newly sharpened Xikar cutter, and lit it up with my Ronson JetLite.

1/3: As I lit this cigar up, and took a few puffs, I got a nice hit of creamy smoothness, that I have come to expect in the lighter cigars.  As I continued down the cigar, the creaminess was consistent, without too many other flavors.  In an attempt to pull a few more flavors out of the cigar, I retrohaled it through my nasal passage.  Upon doing this, I got a little spiciness mixed in with that creaminess.  So far its been an enjoyable morning smoke.  The ash is firm and the burn is even.  After this 3rd, I decided to knock the ash off so I don’t drop it all over myself.

2/3:  As I continued on this cigar, the first thing I noticed was that the burn started to get a little wavy, but it wasn’t enough to worry about yet.  I was still getting the same creaminess flavor, with a little bit of leather on the background. The smoke was still very abundant, and I was enjoying this with my cup of coffee.  So far, if there is one word to use about this cigar… Its consistent.

3/3:  As I finished up this cigar, something was a little bit disconcerting.  I noticed a DARK DARK spot at the head.  It was leaking a dark fluid from it, almost like a dye, but  I am not really sure what it is.  I dried it off, and continued to smoke, but I found it odd that this spot came about.  If anyone knows what this might be, please let me know.  Here is a picture of the head and the dark spot:

I was really still enjoying this cigar, even with the small dark spot problem.  It was nice and creamy all the way down to the end.  The burn was still a little wavy, but the ash was holding tight, and I had to really knock it off the cigar to get it to drop.  So far I am impressed with this cigar.

Overall Impression:  Overall, first I want to thank Tex Cigars for the opportunity to smoke this cigar.  I usually smoke stronger cigars than this, but I was pleasantly surprised with the flavors, and the construction of this cigar.  I will smoke a few more of these I am sure.  If you like mild cigars in the morning, head on over to Tex Cigars and buy yourself some Monaco cigars!

-Scott

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Alright folks, it’s been awhile myself and so here’s a quick review brought to you by our sponsor Cigars Direct. If you’ve never checked them out, I urge you to do so, because they have some high end cigars that a lot of other retailers can’t keep on hand.

Okay, so I’ve smoked these before and was never impressed so when Billy sent me these I was a little less than enthusiastic, but a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do, right?  For this review I smoked two samples and here’s what I got:  The wrapper has a coffee smell that is quite pleasant.  Looking at the cigar it looks well rolled.  The draw was a little loose on both sticks, which isn’t a problem for me.  It all started to go downhill from there.  The taste was bitter and tannic from beginning to end on both of these.  About a quarter of the way through the wrappers started to unravel on me.  I’ve had this happen before on these and I’m not sure if it’s just a delicate wrapper or what.  I double checked my humidor to make sure that the storage conditions were good, and they were, so I don’t know what the story is.  Long story short, these cigars are not my thing.  I do know, however, that they’re quite popular, so if it’s your thing, check out Cigars Direct to pick some up.

And don’t forget about the free cigar giveaway in celebration of our 1-year anniversary.  Click here to see details!

-Ricky

Okay, so we’re only almost a month late. Big deal, right? Well, things have been extremely hectic here, but it’s all been good. So, without further ado, let’s open up this cigar giveaway to celebrate Cigar Command’s 1-year anniversary. What’s up for grabs? Well, it’s a 5-pack of Camachos thanks to Heather and Ralph at Fumee World and I’ll be throwing in a mixed 5-pack of sticks from my personal stash as well.  That’s right, folks, 10 cigars for FREE!

And what do you have to do to be eligible for the prize?  Just comment here and wish us a “Happy Anniversary!”  I’ll keep this open until September 30th, and then all entries will be put into a hat for a random drawing.  The winner will be announced on October 1st!  Unfortunately, this giveaway is open only to our US readers, but feel free to wish us a happy anniversary even if you don’t live within the US.

Oh, and feel free to tell us what you’d like to see in our 2nd year.  More reviews, more accessories, more news, etc…

And, Scott and I want to take the time to thank all of you, our loyal readers, for sticking with us and contributing to Cigar Command.

So a while back, I was talking to Marc Aub, owner of Palio Cutters about some things, and somehow he mentioned he would be sending me a couple of the new cigars that the guys from Palio have come out with, the Esencia Cigar.  I smoked one of them before doing a review, and I really enjoyed it, so I decided the best procedure was to smoke the other one asap and review it for the loyal readers of Cigar Command, so here we go!

Pre-Light:  As I looked at this cigar, I couldn’t help but notice how near perfect this thing was.  The cigar was wrapped perfectly, with no veins, and had a nice brown color to it with a very oily sheen.  As I ran the cigar across my nose, I got hints of pepper, with some floral and cedar smells.  I clipped the cigar with my ever trusty Palio, which I found to be appropriate, given the makers of the cigar :D.  As I took a pre-light draw, I got strong notes of pepper followed by cedar, with that floral taste in the background.

1/3:  As I started on this cigar, I was eager to see what it was all about.  I had read nothing but great things about it, so I was a bit hyped up on it.  As I lit up, the first few puffs were strong coffee and wood notes, with hints of pepper and floral flavors.  All very good flavors that I was enjoying immensly.  The burn was a little wavy, but I am going to attribute that to the fact that I am smoking in a windy environment this morning.  The smoke was smooth, pleasant, and very abundant.  So far, this smoke is living up to what I expected.

2/3:  As I continued with this cigar, I was getting more leather flavors, with the coffee and a little bit of chocolate.  The burn that was wavy is now correcting itself, and the smoke is still very abundant.  The draw is perfect, and I am loving the flavors in this cigar.  The finish is short, which I like.  So far, I am very impressed.

3/3:  In finishing up this cigar, I was still getting the leather and coffee flavors with some nice hints of floral tastes.  At this point, I am wishing that this cigar wasn’t almost over.  I was really enjoying this cigar, and I wish I had another.

Overall Impression:  Overall, this was a great tasting cigar, with a fantastic draw and a fairly even burn.  The flavors were something I always enjoy in my cigars.  If you are someone that loves the coffee and leather flavors in your cigars, then I suggest you give this one a try!  The guys at Palio hit the nail on the head with this cigar!

Cigar Rating: